New to four strokes, what do I need to know?

[SilentAssassin II]

Impulse bought a 17 250r and I've never owned a modern 4 stroke.

 

What can I expect with this thing maintenance wise and lifespan?  Are there weak points or common failures?  The higher maintenance and repair costs have kept me away but I guess I'm in it now.  Just trying to get some expectations.

[The Inquisitor]

IMO put on an hour meter, log all your ride hours and change the engine oil/filter and tranny oil at the same time with the best stuff you can afford MAX 10 engine hours or sooner cus i check my engine oil before every ride and if it looks dark I'll do them all at say 4 hours if I've been riding the bike hard. I don't race but do ride my bike hard.

Then keep an eye on the air filter(s) and keep it or them clean.

These are high performance race motors that like to go fast so treat them that way.

I've got 260+ hours since my last piston/top end on my 2005

 

[eazy230]

Best advise I can give you is change your oil and filter way more often than you would think is necessary. Check valve clearance very other oil change, if it changes regularly, pull head and have it rebuilt. Buy an hour meter

[OntarioHonda]

Never actually owned a 250f but I hear that if you got one with low hours all you gotta do is maintain it well and it will be just as reliable as any other bike.

Sent from my SM-G935W8 using ThumperTalk mobile app

[eazy230]

all four strokes are pretty reliable. But compared to a two stroke that burns a piston or ring up by lack of maintenance, they grenade to the tune of thousands of dollars if neglected.

[mlatour]

Don't idle the bike at a standstill, either shut it off or maintain sufficient speed to move air thru the radiators.

An important consideration if you trail ride rather than motocross.

 

Service the air filter regularly and inspect it for damage and proper sealing,

Titanium intake valves are coated, injested dust and dirt wears the coating away in a hurry.

Edited August 22, 2017 by mlatour

[SilentAssassin II]

I buy many air filters to cycle in, I usually have a new one for every ride.  I race enduros and hare scrambles, just mainly wondering how often the oil should be changed and how often the valves checked/adjusted... And if I should be doing any other regular maintenance besides that throughout a season?  

I plan on sticking with OEM oil/filter because I never think you can go too wrong with that.

 

Is there any trick mods for the clutch to make it better or keep it good for longer, like a nice lever or any other tricks?  Just coming from KTM two strokes with very light clutch pulls that I really like and is one of my minor concerns making the switch to Honda.

Thanks for the help.

[Pontificus Maximus]

These four stroke motors today are super reliable, but as mentioned, you do have to maintain them by changing oil every several hours and making sure the air filter is oiled properly.  Before I modified my airbox to breathe better, the stock filter would stay clean for several rides.  I change my oil filter maybe once every six months or more although I do check it once in a while.  A word to the wise, the number one most important thing to do with a new Japanese bike is to check and adjust the valves after the first or second ride.  Every new Jap bike I've had the valves were off enough that you did not want to wait to get them shimmed properly.  Once that is done they usually stay put for a long, long time.

BTW, I switched over to Mobil 1 European Car Formula 0w-40 on someones suggestion here on TT and it performs really well and is available from Walmart.

 

[Tempura]

Buy an hour meter now. The ones with the tachometer built in are good (ride engineering?).

Motor oil change every three hours

oil filter every six hours

trans oil every six hours

air filter every ride

piston, rings and check valves every 30hours. 

It's fuel injected, so keep your fuel clean, otherwise you'll have blocked fuel pump and injector. Use a twinair tank skin/filter. 

Dont let it sit idling, four strokes get hot real quick.